this and that

been a while due to travels across the country and region.
was in east timor in late june and then later to pakistan where i went to look for the murree single malt but alas, nowhere to be found.
pretty frustrating considering i was just a few stone throws from murree itself.
so decided to go up to penang to meet up with friends for makan and music.
will update on that soon.
meanwhile, if you have nothing much to do these next few days - go to the cotton club in maju junction - plonk thirty ringgit for a drink and listen to arguably the best guitarist in town, paul ponnudorai, perform.
its on for july 24 and 25, 2007, 8.3ppm onwards.
cheers!

the macallan madness

the superb macallan 18-year-old single malt was still fresh in our minds when we decided to go for the 12-year-old at the backyard pub in sri hartamas a week ago.
those wonderful malaysian musicians - gerard singh and sherman tan - were hosting open mike tuesday which saw a band of youngsters with a girl on drums belt out three songs.
then this guy who called himself richie castro with long hair and funny funky guitar took to the stage. the boys took over and backed richie on stage.
off stage, mayhem ruled the dance floor as an inebriated pub patron tried to dance the night away with a host of women.
none took the bait so he went on a merry jig with the backyard floor. he swirled and crashed and continued even as we ordered the 12-year-old macallan single malt.
all i had was my trusty camphone and the presence of mind to hide the bottle when desperate dancer ruled the floor near our table. one of his potential partners sought refuge with us but the bottle was much much more important.
we sacrificed her to him while the bottle of whisky we slaughtered for ourselves.
the bouquet came out of the tumbler sweetly and we sighed in agreement over its subtle toffee sweetness.
the speyside single malt was rich in sherry sweetness and dried fruit with a touch of oakiness for just a right long finish.
we drank in the bouquet and the taste of the 40 percent alcohol by volume single malt from the 75 cl bottle.
nice. very nice! and it went well with the music that night too!

single malt march

the chivas regal, neat as it was, didn't quite cut it.
it didn't assuage the pain.
it didn't make us drunk.
it did go well with the spicy mutton pizza at the national press club.
it also made us poorer at d'vine in plaza damansara.
it also led us to go on a single malt march in kuala lumpur over a few nights this week.
so we - a mate with a heart shattered to shards and i - beat a path to the rib shop for the single malt to soothe our souls. we found it in a bottle of 12-year-old bunnahabhain single malt whisky. and let's just say it was a bargain to boot - considering the prices of drinks these days.
bunnahabhain, which means mouth of the river, comes from the isle of islay that is famous for a few other single malts such as bowmore, lagavulin, ardbeg and laphroaig - some of which have been tasted, drunk, enjoyed and reviewed by yours truly.
the bunnahabhain, neat or with a wee cube of ice in a tumbler, warmly caressed our palate and surprisingly teased us with its lighter-than-usual sweet and smooth Islay taste but long and full-flavoured finish.
apparently bunnahabhain's water is piped from streams in the surrounding hills and is less peaty than might be expected.
all was good with the world. especially with a tumbler of bunnahabhain at hand. and good conversation and good company.
the single malt march continued the next night at the finnegan's pub in jalan sultan ismail. the drink du jour being the bowmore single malt whisky.
we settled on the bowmore cask strength, as the bowmore darkest - the ruby red and ravishing revelation of a drink - was no more in stock.
the auburn cask strength was creamy and rather peaty and more than warmed an otherwise chilly night in kuala lumpur. the brawny beast in a dram of the drink went on a quiet riot through the palate and reinvigorated the spirit, and more than anything, the soul.
the price was nice and even better than some places that placed a premium on plonk they call blended whiskies.
our soul revived, our pockets still jingling with change, we made our way to no black tie - the good music place that has just reopened five doors away from its old spot in lorong mesui, off jalan nagasari in kuala lumpur (near hotel istana-lah).
we strode in as recorded jazz music filtered through the bar and an awesome performance area all decked out in parquet. the place was more than nice and the range of drinks pretty awesome.
there was no bowmore darkest here too. so we ordered the bowmore 17 years old. almost as nice as some of the 18-year-olds i know. whiskies i mean.
we cupped the wonderfully oval tumblers that held the 17-year-old mellow nectar. it was not as brawny as the cask strength but complex with peat smoke and some toffee for a lingering and satisfying finish.
satisfying enough for us to order a couple more each. the bill brought us back to earth though. it was 45 ringgit a pop - affordable if you consider a 15-year-old glenfiddich going for 55 ringgit a tumbler in d'vine.
on that note about prices, no black tie is a great place for good jazz but the cover price of 45 ringgit plus a standard drink is a lot too much to pay for performers that regularly perform elsewhere and where there is no cover charge.
the whisky can be expensive but the music... well, at least one can just sit at the no black tie bar and imbibe the spirits and listen to the music without paying the cover.
or buy some great jazz cds and take it to the ribshop or finnegan's - the drinks are affordable and the management can always be persuaded to play your kind of music.
on that note, slainte mhath!